


The Voice of the Void

by CyclonicJet



Series: A Dance of Fire and Flowers [4]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 16:57:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17084159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CyclonicJet/pseuds/CyclonicJet





	The Voice of the Void

The moment her foot passed the threshold of the doorway Lyanna knew that they had made a grave mistake. They should not have been here. No one should ever have reached this point. This place had clearly been sealed away for a reason. But only now could she understand why.  Before them a lay walkway. It lead off into the far distance, quickly becoming obfuscated by the shroud of darkness that lay thick on the air. At the other end of the path stood a dais, suspended such as it was in the center of the cavern. It was surrounded on all side by a sheer drop and illuminated by a soft glow emanating from atop a pedestal at its center.

Something in the back of Lyanna’s mind seemed to recoil at the sight of it. The dais seemed to stand not just apart from the room, but reality itself. It simply felt like something was very off about it. Almost unnatural even.  Other than the strange glow though everything lay in darkness. It was impossible to gauge how large the room was, if it was a room at all, for nothing beyond the pedestal could be seen. Even the were-light Lyanna had conjured outside failed to pierce the shadows.

This was unlike anything she had ever experienced, and for the first time since the war she felt herself truly unnerved. “We should not be here.” Lyanna muttered urgently. “This was a mistake. A very bad mistake. We need to leave.” 

"You know what." Vaelia muttered beside her. “I find myself in agreement. Let’s-” 

As they turned to leave through the door they found that it had vanished. Seemingly having been swallowed into the swirling mist of shadows that lay thick around the chasm.  “Oh that can’t be good.” Vaelia commented. Lyanna stared up and down at where the door had been, but could find no trace that it had ever been there. She took a moment to think. She would not panic. She had to remain reasoned in her thinking if they were going to get out of this.

“Lyanna?” Vaelia said after a quiet moment had passed. Lyanna could hear the nerves in her voice.

“I think.” Lyanna said slowly. “That we have walked into a trap.”

"A trap?” Vaelia replied. Her nervousness was palpable.

“Indeed. And whatever, or whoever, laid this trap wants us to head there.” she said pointing to the glowing dais in the distance.

“And you think we should go along with this trap then?” Vaelia snapped. 

Lyanna fought hard to retain her compsure in the face of Vaelia’s fear. “I fear we have no alternative.” she said. “Whoever built this place knew what they were doing. I am confident in saying the only way out of here is forward.”  Lyanna stepped forward towards the walkway. 

“You’re sure about this?” Vaelia asked. 

“I’m certain of it.” Lyanna replied being completely uncertain about what she was doing. She placed her foot onto the walkway. She was greatly relieved to find it sturdy beneath her tread. Feeling slightly more confident in her decision she began walking towards the dais.  Vaelia spent only a moment hesitating before following after her, trailing very closely behind her. Lyanna turned to find her eyes darting from shadow to shadow, searching the inky darkness for any signs of threat. Lyanna had never seen her so unnerved, it was so unlike her. But then again it was also unlike herself to be nervous like this, perhaps the only difference between them was that she was just better at hiding it.

There walk across the walkway took far longer than it should have, or at least it felt like it did. Lyanna had the strange feeling that something was purposely keeping them away from it. Tugging and stretching the space before them to slow there progress. That was odd. Why would something be keeping them away from the dais? If this was indeed a trap then why would the trapmaker try and waylay them in such a way? It didn’t make sense. But despite the strange distortions, the two of them were able to finally reach the dais.

The dais itself was formed of stark black stone, with no seams visible in its lining. The pedestal was only slightly different, in that a deep dark emerald hue saturated it’s length. But it was the object hovering above the pedestal that became the sole focus of her attention.  A jet black cube, interlaced with countless criss-crossing lines, floated silently above the pedestal.  Through the intersecting lines patterns could be seen a dull glow, emitting from deep within the cube, It produced an almost ghostly aura around the artifact. 

What really held her fascination though was the fact that the cube seemed to move, despite being stationary. When she held her head still it appeared like a regular cube, but when she moved even slightly, it began to rotate strangely despite remaining motionless.  It looked to her as though it didn’t actually fully occupy the same dimensional space as the world around it. The object was so utterly bizarre she was having trouble wrapping her mind around it.

"What is it Ly?" Vaelia said, her voice hushed with wonder and fear. 

"I'm not sure...” she murmured, continuing to study the cube. She was silent a moment before continuing. “Whatever it is, someone or someone put a whole lot of protection around it. They did not want people finding it."   She was having trouble piecing this particular puzzle together. They had traversed through a veritable hell to reach this room. Why would someone making a trap make it so difficult to fall inside it? That didn’t make sense. Maybe there was more than one force at work here. Two minds working against each other as it were. But where were the players of this game?   

She leaned over and peered deep into the ever shifting depths of the cube. Something in the back of her mind was tweaked, a silent siren call luring her toward it. It was inviting her forward, yearning for her to touch it and unravel its mysteries.  Without conscious thought her hand abruptly reached out to touch it. 

"Whoa!” Vaelia cried. “What are you doing!" She swiftly moved to catch Lyanna’s arm, but was far too late. Lyanna's hand entered inside the tangled mess of the cubes strange reality.

* * *

 

_ "An endless eternity draws to an end. In its place a new song is spun at the twilight of their victory, now turned failure."  _ The voice echoed through Lyanna's head, beating in her mind like a drum. Harsh and monstrous, ancient and eldritch. It was a voice like none other she had ever heard. It filled her with a dread so powerful that she could not begin to fully comprehend her own fear.  She tried to recoil her hand, but the cube had her held firmly in place. Panic began to wrack her as the feeling in her hand numbed and flared with sensations she couldn't even begin to identify.

Meanwhile the voice continued to boom in her head, growing ever louder as it continued  _ "Fumbling at my mind, a child lost in the dark. Seeking truths beyond mortal comprehension. This is delusion".  _ Lyanna's vision began to dim and head fogged. Only the voice persisted now. Only the voice mattered anymore.   There was another voice, what it was saying was lost to her but she could tell it was close by. But it seemed of such little consequence, despite its seeming insistence to the contrary. 

She began to lose her sense of the world. She was set adrift in the endless void of the voices mind. It beckoned her forward, lulling her towards an end she could not see, but one she knew she must reach.

* * *

"LYANNA!" Vaelia screamed. She pulled on her with with every ounce of power she could muster, but she was trapped fast. Her hand would not relinquish from the shifting folds of the cube. Moving around she gazed into her eyes to find them glazed and listless, seeing without vision.  She gazed from Lyanna to the cube and back again. She had to do something! She tore Petal and Thorn from there sheaths and swung down hard at the accursed box. Thorn rebounded off as if had struck a solid wall, the blade reverberating so hard it made her teeth chatter. 

With a force of will she moved to strike it again with Petal instead, only to be met by another invisible and impenetrable wall. She took a step back and crossed the blades before her. Calling upon the power deep within them she urged them to destroy the cube.  An orb of green energy blossomed in the gap between them, then blazed forth, bathing the pedestal in a devastating beam of destructive magic. It washed over the rock like water over rock, leaving nary a mark or scratch upon it or the cube. She roared in frustration. Tears began welling in her eyes, than swiftly started rolling down her cheeks.

* * *

_ "This timeless purgatory is no longer my own. The vanquished is freed, and the conduit is offered in its stead."   _ The voice filled every corner of her mind, every fibre of her being. The darkness had swallowed her whole, there was nothing left to her now but the reality of the oblivion that was ensnaring her.   The voice itself now began to fade too, receding further and further away.  _ " _

_ "Time was the greatest ally they possessed, now it is all but spent and squandered. My time is nigh once more."   _ Lyanna found she no longer cared what it said, she had never understood it anyway. All she wanted to do now was take a nice long sleep. A chance to rest and relieve her weariness. She closed her eyes and began to fade into dreams…

* * *

 

A bright light suddenly filled her vision and burned her eyes. Opening them she an apparition before her. A wraith. It appeared human in form, but lacked any definition or substance.  "Is this how Lyanna Shadows-Bane meets her end?” it said in a scolding tone of voice. “Giving up and falling asleep?" 

Lyanna scoffed and shooed it away with her hand.  "How disappointing." it continued. "After everything I sacrificed you would throw away the gift I parted to you so readily? Not even deigning to put up a fight!?"

Lyanna grunted in response. She had no desire to talk, she only wanted to sleep and this wrath was interrupting her.  "I see now, your mind is addled.” it said. “In your right sense I know you would never act so disregarding of me. But to absolve this malediction is not a luxury we can afford now. With each passing moment you slip ever closer towards me, and this I can not allow."  The wraith snapped its fingers and took on form. Even in her daze Lyanna was dimly aware that something approaching shock had overcome her. Before her stood a dead man, a man who had been a father to her. Her master who had trained her since she was but a little girl in the arts of magic. Anavon stood before her.

"You are greater than this Lyanna.” he said. His voice contained the self assurance of true authority, as if by merely saying the words it would make them true. “I more than any other know this. I will not allow this to be your end."

"There are those who still need you, those who still care for you, and those who still love you." Lyanna felt her mind began to clear, she suddenly found herself able to more fully comprehend what he was saying. The fog that had hung heavy upon her mind was lifting.  "Now Lyanna...WAKE UP!" he bellowed with such force that the void that had surrounded them lifted and blew away like dust in the wind. Her mind wretched as it was flung from the void back to reality. She was no longer nowhere. She was in her own body once again.  But there was also something else within her body, a strange presence. It was the voice! The being which had forced her out of her being. But now it was her turn to repay the favour. It was time she retook control. She opened her eyes.

* * *

Lyanna's eyes snapped open. Vaelia gasped and yelped at the same time. She barely managed to stop her blade in time, just short of slicing off Lyanna’s hand. Staring into her eyes she found she wasn't looking at her. Instead her gaze was affixed intently upon the cube. She seemed to be struggling, her face contorting rapidly through a multitude of emotions. Rage, fear, confusion, determination, defiance. They all swam across her face and all seemed to mingle into one. 

Lyanna opened her mouth and a voice that was not her own emanated. "This will not become our perdition! Our song can not be undone!" it wailed. Then a voice that was Lyanna's cut in.  "You will be condemned here for as long as I deem it! And I deem a time in perpetuity ample punishment for your crimes!" 

Her hand began to flare as light shredded the surface of the cube, she opened her mouth and yelled as two voices screamed in unison. Slowly but surely, Valiea could hear Lyanna's becoming the dominant of the two.  In an instant her mouth clamped shut and her hand was wretched free of the tesseract. She promptly fell to the floor, struggling to draw breath. Vaelia dove down beside her and propped her up in her arms. She held her close for fear of ever letting her go again.


End file.
